Why Soldiers, Policemen Clashed Again in Adamawa

Why Soldiers, Policemen Clashed Again in Adamawa

By: Zagazola Makama

A clash was reported between the men of the Nigerian Police Force and the Nigerian Army at the Adamawa State Police Command Headquarters in Yola.

It was gathered that the fracas between the two security agencies started when a police officer shot a soldier around the Doubeli area of the state capital following an altercation between them.

Intelligence sources told Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency expert and security analyst, that at about 2100 hrz, there was an altercation between three soldiers on the pass from Taraba State and policemen attached to the Jimeta Division, who were on routine stop-and-search operations around Yola North.

The source said that the police allegedly stopped the vehicles of the soldiers and demanded that they step down. It soon turned into a hot argument between the soldiers and the police.

The police pointed a gun at them while one of the soldiers pulled a jack knife. One of the policemen quickly cocked his gun and shot one of the soldiers in the leg. The soldier was, however, promptly rushed to the Specialist Hospital for medical attention.

But immediately after the encounter, rumors started going around that some policemen had shot one soldier on the leg, arrested him, and took him to the State Police Command Headquarters.

Angered by the shooting and rumored arrest of their colleague, soldiers stormed the police headquarters at about 11 p.m. and attempted to force their way into the police command, which led to an exchange of fire between them and the police.

In the course of the melee, a policeman identified as Inspector Jacob Daniel was gunned down.

The incident was confirmed by the Commissioner of Police, Afolabi Babatola, through the spokesman of the Adamawa Police command, Suleiman Nguroje.

Babatola decried the constant clash between the security agencies in the state and appealed for calm “as the top management of both security agencies is doing everything legally possible to address the situation”.

But eyewitnesses at the clash told our reporters that there is an unresolved animosity and mutual suspicion between soldiers and policemen in the state.

In June 2022, one military personnel, identified as Sgt. Ibrahim Ali, was gunned down by police personnel in Adamawa, which triggered another round of military-police clashes in the state.

Why Soldiers, Policemen Clashed Again in Adamawa